What do middle school
students, astronauts, soldiers and your parents have in common? It’s almost
guaranteed they’ve worn Polartec fabrics.
Polartec is a creation of
family-owned and operated Malden Mills Industries, who have been revolutionizing
textile technologies for 110 years. Their innovations can be found in hundreds
of international garment brands, on the battlefield, and even in outer space! Best of
all, they’ve never stopped manufacturing textiles in the United States of
America.
In the late 19th century, a Hungarian immigrant
named Henry Feuerstein got a job sewing blouses in NYC. After being laid off, he
began sell to dry goods across the state and found some success. This led to a
series of real estate investments, including a small mill in Malden,
MA in 1906.
He called the mill “Malden Knitting” and began producing wool
"workman's" sweaters and bathing suits. Soon, the company began
experimenting with various fabrics and dyes and won a contract to produce
uniforms for the U.S. Army. By 1956, they’d achieved "vertical"
continuous production, which means one facility capable of dyeing, printing,
and finishing garments.
In the 1960s, Malden Mills began to expand, opening a new knitting
mill in Bridgton, Maine and experimenting with synthetic fabrics for the
upholstery market. Their process became more automated and—unlike other textile
manufacturers—they invested more resources in Massachusetts, rather than
relocating to where land and labor were cheaper.
The next breakthrough came in the early 1990s when Malden
Mills began experimenting with recycled fabrics and focused on ways to improve
their environmental friendliness. The company reduced consumption, added
further reuse and recycling programs and was recognized by the American Textile
Manufacturers Institute (ATMI) for environmental "excellence" in the
textile industry.
Today, most products sold with the Polartec name contain 80–100
percent recycled fiber. In addition, the company recently introduced
Eco-Velvet—an upholstery fabric made from recycled soda bottles.
You can find Polartec American-made fabrics and technologies in hundreds
of internationally manufactured garments. These include Patagonia, The North
Face, Marmot, Mountain Equipment CO-OP, Mountain Hardwear, Cabela's, Lands End,
LL Bean, Jack Wolfskin, and all branches of the United States Military.
You can also find them at all
2016 American Field events.
We thank Polartec for
their continued sponsorship of American Field.
